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I wanted to share my experience of having a miscarriage at home to help others decide whether they want a D&C (or curette as they call it in Australia) or not and if they opt not to, to know what to expect and how to minimize their suffering. I have had two miscarriages at home - one after only about a month pregnant which was more like a bad period and this one. Warning: this will be somewhat graphic. I was 10.5 weeks pregnant from my last period when I started bleeding with light cramps. The following day I had an ultrasound showing the baby had no heartbeat and was about the size of an 8.5 week baby (which means my baby probably died one or two weeks before, as they say the baby starts shrinking after death). I went home to have my miscarriage. That same day when the cramps started getting worse, I took ibuprophen and as they got even worse, I took a more heavy duty pain killer called Digesic that I had left over from a surgery. I was okay with the pain – it was only like a bad period with all that in me. I passed what I thought might be the amniotic sac but now that I’ve seen one, I realize it wasn’t that at all. It was a most minor chunk of tissue that sort of looked circular. You will pass many random chunks of bloody, unidentifiable tissue. The next day, I had hardly any bleeding and didn’t pass anything large, so I naively thought it was all over. This cycle happened again in the following two days – one day of worse cramping (this time I just took ibuprophen) and passing chunks, one day of nothing. Mind you that when I was preparing to pass a large chunk, I often had profuse bleeding (more than the recommended 1 pad in an hour) but it only went on until the chunk had passed within an hour or two and then it slowed. So then yesterday I started having cramps and naively thought I could handle them without pain killers. So I waited to take the ibuprophen. What a mistake. By the time I took something, I was going through what would be about the equivalent of early labor pains. However, they progressed into what I guess would be like active labor pains (I had a Caesarian so I don’t know what those feel like). I took two different types of pain killers left over from a surgery, but those didn’t take effect soon enough and I was writhing around on the bed in horrible pain. It was like going through labor but it was almost constant – no contraction and relief. Just constant contractions I’d say. And no one by my side to comfort me and tell me what was going on. I endured this pain for about 1½ hours from the start of the real bad stuff until I told my husband I could take it no more and we should go to the hospital. But as we were in the car the pain eased off and as I ran into the hospital I felt myself pass the largest chunk of all. So dripping in blood I went to the bathroom to see I had passed what was unmistakably the foetus. Up until then I hadn’t seen anything that was identifiable – it was all just like bits of liver – but this had an umbilical cord attached and was a thickish clear sac with a baby inside. Since it had been going on for a week, I had already grieved it, so I wanted to save it, have a closer look and bury it. But obviously for someone who hasn’t yet grieved or who is easily grossed out, this would be very hard to see. The cramps then stopped totally by the time I saw a doctor, who said I narrowly missed having to have a D&C. I was very relieved about that having just gone through two surgeries under general anesthesia and not wanting to do it again. However, if I had to do it all over again, I would either get a D&C if it was this far along or get a prescription for heavy duty pain killers and take them at the first hint of cramps as you never know what’s coming, especially if you haven’t passed the foetus. Hope this helps someone to make a more educated decision. If I had been able to find this kind of information on the internet when I looked I would have been spared a lot of pain.

:clap:Iguana you have done all us women a great favor by putting up this post. I am right now passing lumps of tissue and lots of blood and was desparate to know if this was OK. Couldnt find much on the internet, until i found your post. You are n angel. Thank you, from the deepest part of my heart for this superbly written, much needed article. Good luck with your future pregnancies, and keep posting.

I just joined to say that my girlfriend and I found this very helpful because we went through this tonight and didnt really know what was going on. So thank you all.

Additionally, I wanted to add that this lasted about an hour and a half. And yes, she claimed it was comparable labor pains, but not quite as bad. She laid on the floor balled up for a while, and as it subsided, was able to sit. As it progressed, she found herself running back & forth to the bathroom almost immediately, and then it tapered off and she seems fine now.

So thanks again all. This is an important thing youve done here and Im surprised that I didnt really find anything else on the net that was as detailed.

Oh, one last thing, we didnt go to the ER, but Ill keep you all in the know if anything else comes up.aw:

I'm so sorry for your loss and even sorrier that you had to endure so much pain. I, too, had a natural miscarriage and they're definitely not for the faint of heart. I admire your stamina, your courage and, most of all, your sharing. You're a warrior. All my love to you and your DH.

I wanted to say thank you for sharing this back in 2006. It is Nov 09 now and I was just sent home to have my miscarriage. This is my first experience and my last - I hope. I have been freaked out about what to expect and I am a "need to know" type of person - so your post really helps! I'm 6 weeks so I hope things will be like a really bad period. Thank you again.

Thank you for writing this. I was on week 12 when i learned there was no heart beat, but the fetus was about 8.5-9.5. I was so shocked and did not know what would be right for me. I had a DNC and reading your experience that was probably the right thing for me.

If anyone was curious about a DNC Compared to this, my experience was much easier in comparison. I never had before surgery so I was nervous. I don't remember being prepped on the table (though I was awake for awhile apparently!) I just suddenly was woken up by a nurse in the recovery and had some cramping. Later that night I had some heavy bleeding but nothing that made me concerned, but the cramps hurt more then a few Advil could handle. My stomach swelled up too but that went away real fast. The next day I feel much better and have light menstrual bleeding but I still feel the need to rest.

thank you so much for this information. I am currently at 14 weeks and 4 days. I started spotting on sunday. Nothing on Monday. had some brownish spotting on tuesday. Called the dr's office to question the nurse. Dr himself called me back and said to come in and check for heartbeat. I went in yesterday/ wednesday. When I gave a urine sample there was alot of mucus that was pink. I think I knew right then it would just get worse. The dr couldn't find a heartbeat. He sent me for ultrasound. It confirmed that the baby had died, at 11 weeks. I had the same thing happen in January. I was 15 weeks gestation and that baby had died between 9-10 weeks. deja vu. I had a d&c with the last one. I've had nightmares ever since. I wanted to see the baby, but if you understand exactly what they do during the procedure, you'll understand why that wasn't possible. I also wanted footprints but was to afraid to ask. i still wish I'd asked. So this time I'm having the miscarriage at home. The dr wants me to save the "tissue" in a baggie. I think a jar might work better. (But in the end just what exactly would you do with the fetus?) The dr wants me to save tissue so they can make sure I've passed it all. i'm sure they are talking about the placental tissue. I'm expecting it to hurt like hades, I do have some painkillers on hand. i also have plenty of hospital pads, both for wearing and laying on. I've had 6 kids, so I know what labor feels like and that's what I'm expecting. I've had two m/c's at home but I was barely pregnant so it wasn't as bad. Wish me luck

Spontaneous abortion, miscarriage, or helpless, the little guy is the fulfillment of our lives, our natural birth intentions and ways to experience the time when we need it in our body the way most sacred trust. Come naturally to me, abortion is traumatic enough, because it believed that losing my baby, I do not feel the need to sit in the doctor's office, or to endure trauma surgery (D & C) to release the child.

I just had a miscarriage at 8 + weeks. We have discovered with certainty the analysis, but I had started bleeding, I was ready a bit of bad news. I opted for surgery natural miscarriage, or not wanting to be monitored in the hospital and found that the best option because it was the case. He asked if I had lost fetal tissue and had to ask the nurse to know the difference between the loss of blood and clots and normal. I hated the way I asked, as if this happens to me every week. I realize a lot to him, but would have appreciated a little consideration..

Hello. I thought I'd contribute what I went through to this post, just as an additional perspective. I had a miscarriage 4 days ago. I was 11 weeks along with my calendar (we knew when we conceived) but had not visited a proper care provider and had all of the exams. About a week before the actual passing of the baby, I was at home and passed a large amount of a thick mucus that was mixed with a bit of old blood. About an hour later, more mucus but with some fresh blood. The mucus was different than discharge, as it was clear and could stretch a long distance. I went to the Emergency room, instinctively knowing that this was the mucus that was making up my developing mucus plug, but the doctors sent me home since I had no pain. I went along for the week feeling okay, but I had started to have some spotting. I attributed this to the "normal spotting" some women have, so I didn't let it bother me. The day of the miscarriage, the amount of blood I was passing increased rapidly (I stand up all day at work, so I was noticing the feeling the whole time) and I started to do a little research into bleeding. Since I still had no pain, I worked the rest of the day and went home. Sometime around 7pm, I started to have really light cramping, and around 10:30 it felt like full-on menstrual cramps, but just a bit more "electric". At 12:30, I told my husband to start the car, and we went to the emergency room. The pain had me panting, bleeding, and crying on the floor of the waiting room. The hospital was full, and I ended up going through it all right there in the waiting room. The nurse put me near the restroom. I could feel when I was about to have a large amount of blood come out each time, and I asked my husband to tell the nurses that I needed a specimen cup as I was about to pass the baby. (The nurses had told him earlier that they needed a specimen to make sure it wasn't just a "blood clot." What a crock of s__t.) Still no room in the hospital for me to go. So, when it came time to pass the baby, the cramps... okay, really contractions, had little by little gotten closer together until it was just one long contraction. And then, in the middle of the worst of the pain, I ran to the bathroom and passed the baby into the cup. I can't tell you how I knew it was coming, I could just feel that I had reached the peak. Afterwards, I could walk upright, but still had a tapering off of the contraction pain and I was passing large amounts of blood and matter. They finally got me into a room, and I had a physician do a pelvic exam. When he opened me up with the speculum *GRAPHIC AHEAD* a Very large blood clot (about the size of a zucchini) spilled out that the physician said was blocking my cervix from inside my uterus. He said that my womb looked clean after that and that I had no trauma. After that, the nurse gave me a pain killer and I went home. I have been sore as hell since then to be honest. Nothing on the internet talks about having a natural miscarriage and how violent it feels (I took no painkillers). My mom later shared that she had had one on her own and that it's just about as strong as going through a natural birth. I wanted to put this out there, as a contribution. It's totally survivable (I've had extremely painful menstrual cramps my whole life, and I think that kind of prepared me for this in a way) and I wish I would have just done it at home. But if you do, please see a physician afterwards. It could keep you from having to have a D&C. The pain for me was as bright as lightning, and now I can feel everything moving back into place. It really helps to have someone there with you and to be able to move around (squatting was the most relieving position for me). Good luck to anyone reading this.

Thank you ladies who had the courage to share these stories with us.
i believe that i had a miscarriage the other day,i was at work and all of a sudden i start droping clots of blood and it would not stop, there was no pain. Went to the doctor the next day and they saw no baby sac's. i have been having bleeding everyday since. I feel so lost and confussed. i have faced so much loss in my life. i've lost a mother, sister, father. But this loss is so different than those. i feel as if i've let this baby down somehow. i want to cry and feel sad but every one around me keep telling me that it's okay and it will pass, and no one wants to talk about it. i feel bad because i want to scream and just cry and i want to fix what is broken and i can't. thank you for letting me share

I am going through a miscarriage right now and I just wanted to thank everyone for their posts about their m/c. I have not passed any major tissue yet so it just seems to be a waiting game. We were devastated yesterday when they told us that they could not see the baby anymore.

I had a natural miscarriage this week and thought I would share my experience. I had an ultrasound at 8 weeks and there was a perfect heartbeat. I went for an appointment at 15w6d and the doctor could not find heartbeat on doppler. Had an ultrasound and confirmed the baby had passed away and was measuring 12w4d.

I scheduled a D&C for 2 days later (because we were expecting a big snow storm). However, that night I started having some mild cramps. The cramps lasted 2 hours and I went to sleep after taking some tylenol.

I woke up at 1am with contractions. They were very strong and coming in quick waves, about one every minute. After about 10 minutes, I got out of bed and could barely walk. I sat down at my desk for a minute and felt a huge gush of fluid as my water broke and I started bleeding. I ran to the bathtub as my legs were soaked and the baby fell out in the tub. He was perfectly formed 12.5 week fetus with 10 fingers and toes.

The contractions were a less intense and I stood there in shock for about 20 minutes. I started taking a shower to clean up. I coughed and the placenta just fell out. It was much larger than I expected, about the side of a big navel orange. The cramps nearly stopped after that and I passed some clots and tissue. The next day I only had light cramping and light bleeding, not enough to fill a pad.

It was all a bit surreal, but I'm glad it happened naturally and I got to see my baby and say goodbye. The doctor told me not to save it (as they only test if it's a 3rd miscarriage), but I didn't know what to do with it. I ended up contacting a funeral home and they offered to cremate the remains as a courtesy. That provided much needed closure. My thoughts and prayers go out to all of you. ray: